Monique Fuiava spent time after work last season watching the Oregon softball team compete in a Las Vegas Tournament.
She was in high school last season. Fuiava returns to Las Vegas this weekend, a freshman making an impact on a Division I program. Oregon is participating in the Louisville Slugger Classic, and Fuiava said she expects a contingent of family and friends to be in attendance.
Oregon opens tournament play with games against Northwestern State and Kansas on Friday. The Ducks face Bradley University and South Carolina on Saturday and close the tournament Sunday against San Jose State.
The South Carolina game is a rematch of last spring’s South Carolina Regional in the NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks beat Oregon in consecutive games to eliminate the Ducks, but so far, this season’s South Carolina squad is off to a 2-4 start.
Oregon, which is 2-3, benefited in its 14-4 thumping of Cal Poly last weekend from two home runs and six RBIs from Fuiava. That game also marked Fuiava’s first start on defense.
The poised play of Fuiava hid any jitters she felt when she first came up to bat and hit a first-inning grand slam.
“After a while you just get used to it and you just know that you’ve been playing the game so long it just comes naturally,” Fuiava said.
She came up again in the third inning and slugged a pitch she initially thought stayed in the park. Fuiava realized it was gone when she rounded first base and headed for second.
Fuiava had another opportunity her third at-bat with the bases loaded and had Arendsen thinking, “This is going to be national news. She’s going to hit another one. It’s going to be three homers, 10 RBIs and it wouldn’t have surprised me a bit. “She struck out instead.
Fuiava is splitting time at first base with sophomore Carlyn Re and making the transition to college softball, but after one weekend coach Kathy Arendsen says she’s been impressed with Fuiava’s power on offense and her defense, while also expressing satisfaction with Re’s play.
“She’s an incredibly talented young woman, kind of scary strong,” Arendsen said of Fuiava. “She’s going to be able to do some great things as she gets more consistent and as she gets more experience.”
It’s long been a dream of Fuiava’s to play in the Pacific-10 Conference. She considered California, but seeing who they were recruiting, found Eugene a more ideal location to come in and contribute. Fuiava found the team chemistry appealing and wanted to be a part of it.
“It’s not right down the street but it’s local enough where my parents can make that drive or make that flight,” Fuiava said.
She is originally from Los Angeles, before her family moved to Las Vegas and she played softball her junior and senior years at Mojave High School.
Another freshman making her debut last weekend, Brittany Rumfelt, admitted she had nerves, while allowing 11 hits and four earned runs in her winning performance against Cal Poly.
“I was nervous,” she said. “I was really nervous, but I worked through it.”
Pressure on Rumfelt has been alleviated with the presence of veteran pitchers junior Melissa Rice and senior Alicia Cook, who the freshman says have helped guide her.
“She is a talented pitcher,” Arendsen said. “She spins the ball so well. Being a left-hander, she is a great worker … and for her she is just getting that comfort zone out there in a game and trusting our defense.”
The versatile Rumfelt, who was a three-sport athlete in high school, spent time as a goalkeeper in soccer, so she’s accustomed to being in a position where she can have a large impact on a game.
“I like the competition,” Rumfelt said. “I like to take things on.”
[email protected]